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.jpg) USSHawkbill (SSN-666) offSouthern California on 1 February 1991 | |
| History | |
|---|---|
 United States | |
| Name | USSHawkbill (SSN-666) |
| Namesake | Misspelling carried over from previous ship of the name (USS Hawkbill (SS-366)) of "hawksbill", a largesea turtle |
| Ordered | 18 December 1964 |
| Builder | Mare Island Naval Shipyard,Vallejo,California |
| Laid down | 12 September 1966 |
| Launched | 12 April 1969 |
| Sponsored by | Mrs. Bernard F. Roeder |
| Commissioned | 4 February 1971 |
| Decommissioned | 15 March 2000 |
| Stricken | 15 March 2000 |
| Nickname(s) |
|
| Fate | Scrapping viaShip and Submarine Recycling Program begun 15 March 2000, completed 1 December 2000 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class & type | Sturgeon-classattack submarine |
| Displacement |
|
| Length | 292 ft (89 m) |
| Beam | 32 ft (9.8 m) |
| Draft | 29 ft (8.8 m) |
| Installed power | 15,000 shp (11,000 kW) |
| Propulsion | OneS5Wnuclear reactor, twosteam turbines, onescrew |
| Speed |
|
| Test depth | 1,300 ft (400 m) |
| Complement | 109 (14officers, 95enlisted men) |
| Armament | 4 × 21 in (533 mm)torpedo tubes |
USSHawkbill (SSN-666), aSturgeon-classattack submarine, was the second ship of theUnited States Navy to be named for thehawksbill, a largesea turtle. The name perpetuated the inadvertent misspelling of "hawksbill" in the naming of the first ship of that name,USS Hawkbill (SS-366), aBalao-class submarine launched in 1944. USSHawkbill (SSN-666) was theeighteenth of 39Sturgeon-classnuclear-powered submarines that were built.
Hawkbill was sometimes called "The Devil Boat" or the "Devilfish" because of herhull number, 666, with thenumber of the beast.[citation needed]
The contract to buildHawkbill was awarded to theMare Island Division ofSan Francisco Bay Naval Shipyard inVallejo,California, on 18 December 1964 and herkeel was laid down there on 12 September 1966. She waslaunched on 12 April 1969, sponsored by Mrs. Bernard F. Roeder, the wife ofVice AdmiralBernard F. Roeder, CommanderUnited States First Fleet, andcommissioned on 4 February 1971.[citation needed]
In 1982,Hawkbill completed a scheduled overhaul of herreactor core atPuget Sound Naval Shipyard atBremerton,Washington, with her crew berthed atNaval Submarine Base Bangor atBangor, Washington. Aftersea trials and sound trials and port visits toNanaimo,British Columbia,Canada;Alameda, California; andSan Diego, California,Hawkbill returned toPearl Harbor,Hawaii, commanded by Fred Crawford, where she joined Submarine Squadron ONE.[citation needed]
In 1983,Hawkbill made aWestern Pacific cruise, under the command of George Roletter, with stops atYokosuka,Japan;Subic Bay, thePhilippines; andHong Kong.[citation needed]
Hawkbill made a dependent cruise fromLahaina,Maui, Hawaii to home port in Pearl Harbor. In early 1984,Hawkbill deployed to theArctic, undertaking an 87-day excursion under thepolar ice cap which included visits toChinhae,South Korea; andGuam.Hawkbill earned two Battle Efficiency "E" awards from Submarine Squadron ONE during this period.[citation needed]
Hawkbill wasdecommissioned on 15 March 2000, the last of the"short-hull"Sturgeon-class attack submarines to be decommissioned, and that same day both was stricken from theNaval Vessel Register and entered theShip and Submarine Recycling Program at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard for scrapping. Her scrapping was completed on 1 December 2000.[citation needed]
Hawkbill'ssail was preserved and is exhibited in theIdaho Science Center inArco,Idaho.
This article incorporates text from thepublic domainDictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be foundhere. This article incorporatespublic domain material fromHawkbill (SSN-666) at theNaval Vessel Register.